


domesticity

by alessandriana



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Family Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-13
Updated: 2016-02-13
Packaged: 2018-05-18 18:06:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5937943
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alessandriana/pseuds/alessandriana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It'd been eighteen years since he'd left Trader's Luck, but the motions were still familiar, the baby a comforting weight as he settled it securely against his shoulder, head tucked into his neck. Out of habit he bounced a little, settling the kid.</p>
            </blockquote>





	domesticity

**Author's Note:**

  * For [plinys](https://archiveofourown.org/users/plinys/gifts).



By the time Han returned to Leia's side from the buffet table with a plate piled high with canapés, Leia had somehow acquired a baby. She was holding it awkwardly out at arm's length while a dark-haired woman grinned at her from behind her hand, eyes twinkling with good-natured amusement. Han thought he recognized her as one of the A-Wing pilots, though he couldn't remember her name.

"Han." Leia visibly brightened when she saw him returning, and Han had only a moment to feel smug at this display of affection before Leia was attempting to foist the baby upon him.

"Well hello there to you too, sweetheart," he said, deftly blocking her gambit with the plate of canapés. Foiled, Leia pulled back with a frustrated moue. She was holding the poor kid-- maybe a year old, Han couldn't tell if it was a boy or a girl underneath those dark curls-- upright by its underarms, and neither of them looked particularly comfortable with the situation. Han glanced over at the mother, but she didn't seem particularly inclined to intervene, too busy laughing at them both. "Who's your friend there?"

"This is Poe Dameron." The aforementioned Poe Dameron wiggled in her arms, trying to reach for Leia's hair, which was bound in two long braids on either side of her face. Leia grimaced and shifted the kid until she could get an arm underneath him for support, and Han let out a silent sigh of relief. He'd been afraid for a second there she was going to drop him. "Poe is Shara Bey's son, he's here visiting his parents." The other woman smiled and waved.

Dameron-- oh. "You're the pilot who went with Leia to Naboo," he said. "Kes's wife, right? Nice work out there. Going up against a Star Destroyer with only three fighters takes some guts." Han reached out to shake her hand.

"That's me. Kes mentioned he'd been working with you-- I hope he hasn't been giving you too much trouble."

"'Naw, Kes has been a big help. Don't think we'd've managed the Endor assault without him." Han shot her a smile, but his gaze kept drifting back to Leia, who was staring down at the baby with a preoccupied expression on her face. He'd grabbed hold of one of the ends of her braids and was chewing on it, and she wasn't even trying to stop him. Han wasn't sure why, but the sight did something weird to his insides.

"Geez, Leia, you look like you've never seen a baby before," he said, unable to help himself.

"I haven't," she said absently. She reached upwards and ran a tentative hand across the kid's hair. He gurgled happily around her braid, and nearly smacked her in the face with a tiny fist. 

"Seriously?" Han felt his eyebrows crawl upwards.

"Well, I've _seen_ them," she amended. "Just... not from this close up." She looked up from her temporary charge and made a face at Han's incredulous look. "Senator's daughter, remember? Everyone used nurses. It wasn't polite to parade your children around until they were at _least_ old enough to hold a decent conversation." Realizing how this must sound, she turned to Shara. "Not that _I_ mind." 

"No offense taken," Shara said, amused. She winced as Poe wiggled in Leia's arms, nearly taking a header towards the floor, and hesitated with her mouth half open. Evidently she wasn't comfortable criticizing Leia's baby handling skills. Han, on the other hand, was perfectly happy to do so.

"I'm pretty sure the goal is to _avoid_ dropping them," he said, and shoved a canapé in his mouth, so he was chewing obnoxiously when she turned to glare at him.

"Because _you_ could do _so_ much better, I'm sure," Leia drawled. Her arch look spoke volumes.

Han sighed and shoved the plate of canapés in Shara's general direction; she took it with a bemused smile (and started eating some herself). Then he reached out and plucked the baby from Leia's arms. It'd been eighteen years since he'd left _Trader's Luck_ , and even longer than that since they'd had a kid this young on that ship, but the motions were still familiar, the baby a comforting weight as he settled it securely against his shoulder, head tucked into his neck. Out of habit he bounced a little, settling the kid. "Well, now that you _mention_ it," he drawled in turn.

Poe blew a spit bubble and gurgled happily, unperturbed by his new location.

Leia's startled expression faded slowly, to be replaced by something bright and warm and amused. She rubbed a hand over her mouth. "Oh, my."

Han began to feel like he'd made a critical mistake. "What?"

"Nothing. I just wouldn't have expected Han Solo, the great space pilot, to be quite so, so... domestic." She didn't sound as mocking as he might have expected. In fact, she sounded almost pleased. Han wasn't sure what to make of that.

"Not all of us grew up totally insulated from the real world, Princess," he said with a huff. He wasn't as offended as he made himself sound, though. _Domestic_. That warm feeling was back, knotting up his insides. He... could get used to domestic.

 

***

 

A week and a half later, Leia informs him she's pregnant.

 

***

 

Leia gets a sling to carry the baby. It becomes a common sight to see her striding through the base with a small head peeking over her shoulder, and no one seems to be fazed when she conducts briefings with a baby chewing on her hair.

(Han gets one, too. So does Chewie.)

Han has more tolerance for dealing with screaming (he's had to learn how, dealing with Chewie), so he gets to rock the kid when he just won't shut up. Leia is better able to deal with lack of sleep, so she gets the midnight wakeup calls.

Luke's delighted as well, because it means he gets to be the cool uncle. He's got the kid knocking his bowl off the table with the Force by the time he's twelve months old. (Han's not sure how he feels about this.)

Chewie takes over for whichever of them is off saving the galaxy that day. They make C-3PO change the diapers, and R2-D2 learns to warble lullabies.

It's not always fun, it's definitely not easy, but they're a family and they make it work somehow. Han's never been so happy.

They name him Ben.

**Author's Note:**

>  _Trader's Luck_ is the ship Han grew up on in the EU. No idea if that's still canon or what, but... *shrug*

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [[Podfic] domesticity](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14136222) by [sisi_rambles](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sisi_rambles/pseuds/sisi_rambles)




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